I have recently applied to for a position in the writing program at the American University of Cairo and I think I have a decent shot at an offer.

I was wondering if any of you have first-hand (or--why not?--second-hand) knowledge of the university, the working conditions, pay, neighborhood--really anything as I know very little about this school (or Cairo, for that matter).

He's currently in Australia, and he tells me they don't take his degree seriously; they don't recognise it as valid; he is sincerely dejected after all the course work and money he spent to obtain the degree -- and it's a two-year programme.

Some of the professors in that particular department are a little... insecure, to say the least.

My advice is to happily agree with everything you are told by those guys, and in an idoitically enthusiastic manner that says, "yes, yes, you're right. Everything you say is correct. Nothing could be otherwise. You seem like a genius. Aren't I lucky to bask in the glow of your intellect?"

Seriously, they'll black-ball you if you ask a letimate question, and then act as though you are challenging the second-hand ideas they have never dared to independently analyse; focus on developing your rote memorisation skills for the exams.

Check-out their 'advanced' syntax class -- the cover of the course book says 'introduction'. I guess they skipped the 'intermediate' level.

But most of academia is that way, and they're not bad guys -- just nervous. Seems most of the Americans and British professors have come to AUC from a university in the States or Britian where they didn't make tenure. And their publishing CVs look obviously 'padded'.

Like anything else, take what you can from the experience and consider it part of your personal growth and development.

There is certainly no money to be made in Egypt, unless on a foreign contract -- forget the 'local hire' approach, as they stop paying you and you have no recourse.

I'd say that your friend has encountered more of prejudice against Egyptians... ie non-native speakers teaching English in Australia - than anything to do with the MA from AUC - which is fully accredited. Heaven only know what you are talking about that the professors are 'insecure.' A couple who have been there since I got my MA are tenured professors who just happen to prefer living in Cairo, in spite of your opinion of that professional choice. The others have been hired to replace professors who moved on to new jobs or retired, just like everywhere in the world. Generally I would have to say that you apparently know little or nothing of the university, the acceptance of the degree, or how good or bad its professors are compared to any of the other MA programs around the world. Just like every place else, the faculty is a mix of good, bad, and mediocre. I wouldn't expect an American based MA from Cairo to impress the Aussie educational system any more than an Aussie MA would impress in LA... especially if you are a non-native speaker trying to enter an already overfilled field where local native speakers can't get jobs.

But this person who is posting doesn't care about the MA program as that isn't his question. He is asking about the conditions as a teacher in the Freshman Writing Program.

And BTW... the pay and benefit package is very good if you have the credentials and experience - and avoid being local hire.

Along with the odd use of 'insecure', there was the other odd usage of the word 'nervous' that suggested that you are an Arabic speaker... as both of them were commonly misused by my students...

... so who knows what you are 'maybe' trying to say...

VS

When Egyptians say "Nervous" they often mean "agitated" or "edgy". It's one of those rare "faux-amis" in Arabic. They say /nerfiz/ for to annoy, irritate or put someone else's nerves on edge. The reflexive form is /?itnarfiz/. The derived noun, /mitnarfiz/.

I think this is Egyptian dialect. I haven't come across it from other Arabs. You can see how easy it is to confuse this with "nervous".

The Turks use nervous in that way as well- as in stressed and agitated, but I am not sure about the linguistic reasoning behind it. And they do things 'too much'. Funny that. Maybe its an Ottoman linguistic hangover from before the Great Arabic/Persian Purge of Ataturk in the 20s.